This is why aliens will probably come to peace

Men have been turning to stars for millennia to ask if we are the only intelligent beings in the universe. Statistically, it's very illogical (as Spock would say), we're alone. Expanding on this planet of 7 billion inhabitants, there are 46 billion light years between us and the edge of the knowable universe. There must be someone or somethingthing.

Sometimes it's better not to dwell on it unless you like to have an existential crisis. Leave that to the SETI Institute and to people like Dr. Frank Drake, who developed in 1961 the Drake equation, which seeks to calculate the number of detectable civilizations in the Milky Way.

During a recent visit to Mountain View, I stopped at the Institute to talk with the President and CEO Bill Diamond before World Space Week to find out more about his ongoing research and what he thinks (or hopes to do) during his lifetime.

Just to clarify some misconceptions. The SETI Institute is a non-profit research center, outsourced to several space and scientific agencies, including NASA, NSF and the USGS. he is not affiliated with the protocols you may have downloaded to run in your browser in sleep mode (ie SETI @ home, based in Berkeley). Its headquarters are also not in the network of 42 Allen plates (located in Hat Creek, California) scanning the sky for signals. But this East a radio telescope belonging to the Institute and operated by it; it is one of the places where scientists from the Institute use current research projects.

Here are edited and condensed excerpts from our conversation.

Bill, can you describe the mission of SETI?
The mission of the SETI Institute is to explore, understand and explain the origin and nature of life in the universe and the evolution of the world. 39; intelligence. We are a key research entrepreneur for NASA and the National Science Foundation, and we work with industry partners throughout Silicon Valley and beyond. Founded in 1984, the SETI Institute employs over 130 scientists, educators and administrative staff. The work of the SETI Institute is based on three centers: the Carl Sagan Center for the Study of Life in the Universe (Research), the Center for Education and the Center for awareness.

What prompted you to get on board and lead the organization?
Like many people of my generation, I grew up with the Gemini and Mercury space programs; These NASA efforts were very exciting and compelling for me. I've also devoured a lot of science fiction, which inspired me, and then I studied physics at the university level, where astronomy and astrophysics were part of This program. So, I've always had a deep fascination for the subject.

I want to make sure that the next generation is also excited about the subject. Thus, through a number of education and awareness programs, including Big Picture Science, our weekly radio show and our podcast, we aim to present our scientific research to the public with a lively and intelligent narrative. We also have a series of monthly public lectures and a YouTube channel called SETI Talks.

is it true Dr. Frank Drake always come to work at SETI several times a week at 88?
Yes, he does. And he drives himself, coming over the mountains of Santa Cruz after The traffic in the bay area lowers and goes away before it degrades again.

It's inspiring. Let's talk about his Drake equation.
Drake's equation identifies the 40 or if billions of planets in our galaxy that have at least the potential to have developed technological civilizations. He does this by trying to understand the birth rate of stars; the percentage of stars with planets, the number of planets are in the habitable zone and have the correct orbital position for the maintenance of liquid water. Then, it examines what fraction of these planets could develop life, then what fraction of these could develop complex organisms and intelligence, and finally, what fraction of these would have developed the technological civilizations.

In 1961, what level of technological complexity did Dr. Drake expect?
Frank defined a "technological civilization" as a civilization that developed radio technology and the ability to manipulate the electromagnetic spectrum.

Then he also calculated how long these technological civilizations could last, a thought that makes you think.
Effectively. This is the last variable in Drake's equation, the variable "L". This is my favorite and most provocative element of the equation, in my opinion. Humans are [now] about one hundred years in the technological stage of evolution, so we are very early in the time horizon of the L variable, which Frank has suggested as being 10,000 years old. Given the challenges that humanity faces in the next 100 years, let alone the next 10,000 years, Frank's prediction could be optimistic!

Until something catastrophic happens to this species and its habitat?
Yes, factors such as overpopulation, a major impact on asteroids (remember the dinosaurs), a nuclear war, a pandemic or any other similar event could affect the "L-value" of the planet. ;humanity. But Frank was more broadly focused on the time during which a technological civilization could remain detectable – that is to say. until they emit more information in the electromagnetic spectrum or have evolved to a point where technology, as we know it, is no longer necessary. for their sustained existence. Essentially, we are going largely dark now.

How are we going dark?
We are becoming obscure as we now listen to music, watch television and even listen to radio via a closed fiber optic network, mostly on the Internet. This means that we broadcast much less in space. We still emit radio waves for airport radars, for example, and for the moment, they are the strongest signals we transmit. Nevertheless, it is precisely this type of signal that we are looking for. Indeed, the SETI research concerns listening and searching for "techno signatures" such as laser pulses, radio waves and other phenomena that we may not have imagined yet.

Good point. Retake us, what were the first experiences of the SETI Institute?
Dr. Jill Tarter, Cofounder of the SETI Institute and pioneer of SETI, made his first experiments on the Arecibo radio telescope [in Puerto Rico]. She was a key stakeholder of the Institute Phoenix Project [from 1995 to 2004] and then led the effort to build the Allen Telescope Network [commissioned in 2007 and operated by the SETI Institute as the world’s only dedicated and purpose-built SETI radio telescope].

Jill is still with us, as a custodian, and is very involved so far – 34 years later. Frank Drake is of course another pioneer of SETI, having conducted the very first SETI experiments at the National Astronomical Radio Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia, in the 1960s. This is in preparation for the very first meeting of the astronomers and astrophysicists – that NASA urged to explore the merits of SETI programs, which included such personalities as Carl Sagan – that Frank derived from the now famous Drake equation.

Your optical experience has been instrumental in the Laser SETI project. Can you talk about that?
Yes, we are adding optical technologies for the detection of laser pulses and the SETI Laser This project aims to deploy specialized cameras around the world to create an open sky observatory that can be used at any time to search for laser flashes in deep space. Laser pulses could be used for advanced communications and / or propulsion systems and their characteristics would be easily distinguishable from starlight or other natural phenomena.

How do you collaborate with NASA?
The SETI Institute has a long history with NASA, starting with the first SETI experiments when NASA funded these efforts. The Institute and its founders have participated in all Mars missions since Viking as contributors to mission science such as Voyager, Galileo, Cassini, OSIRIS-REx and New Horizons.

Nathalie Cabrol, Janice Bishop, Pascal Lee and Ross Beyer helped identify landing sites for Mars missions; Philippe Sarrazin developed the CheMin XRD / SRF X-ray diffraction system on the Curiosity Rover; and Pablo Sabron develops a revolutionary Raman spectrometer for NASA missions to Enceladus and Europa. Mark showalter discovers new planets and moons around gas giants and Pluto, and Franck Marchis detects them around asteroids. The Kepler / TESS team at the SETI Institute is developing new algorithms to find new exoplanets from the Kepler and Tess mission datasets We are also collaborating with NASA on the Border DevelopmentLaboratory, which is an AI research accelerator for Space Science of NASA.

This brings AI experts to the SETI institute, many for the first time?
Yes, coming from the world of industry, academia and other research centers, the FDL program is a research accelerator for early-stage PhD students in artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as their counterparts in areas of deep science, such as planetary science. We have brought together interdisciplinary teams, where we have associated computer scientists with researchers to address the main research challenges where advanced AI / ML techniques can be effectively deployed to accelerate discovery and understanding.

FDL does not only concern the application of AI to basic research, but also the power of interdisciplinary teams. Scientists often work in isolation or in somewhat homogeneous collaborations. FDL is about creating research teams made up of people from diverse backgrounds and leveraging the power of AI to conduct compelling scientific activities. It also involves industry partners – such as Intel, Google, IBM, Lockheed, and Nvidia – and these companies provide the technology, expertise, and funding to support the research teams. The results have been extraordinary during the first three years of the program and we are already in the planning phase for FDL 2019.

What do you think of Hollywood attempts to describe SETI type discoveries?
Hollywood movies arouse at least interest and excitement for space exploration. 2001, the odyssey of space is one of the best movies of all time! I [also] thought the movie Arrival was particularly compelling because – for the first time, I believe – in a Hollywood film, the extraterrestrial experience was explored in a positive light.

Finally, I have to ask this. If a spaceship were to fall and a door opened, are you so curious to get on board?
Yes I would like.

Me too.
The reason I would do it, is that I think we would have some understanding of the intention well before the opportunity comes to get on board the craft. Any civilization that has the technology to cross interstellar space, with biology on board – because it is difficult for biological beings to travel that distance – by default, is much more advanced than us. So, the probability that they have crossed the interstellar space just to go through the Earth to "have us have dinner" is a rather absurd notion. So yes, I would be curious to meet them.

If you're fascinated by what might be out there, check out an event in your part of the galaxy as part of World Space Week from October 4th to 10th.